1. Field of the Invention
This invention relates to the methods of construction for residential and business building roofs with any pitch, single or split, flat or steep, with a continuous interlocking wind resistant metal membrane.
2. Description of Related Art
Roofing projects where the building design includes a change in the pitch of the roof, a “slope break,” present special difficulties for many roofing materials. This is especially true for long-panel metal roofing systems, where such a change in slope will usually require cutting the pan at the slope break, or require the use of two separate roof panels with a flashing at the slope break.
Many different flashing techniques and sealants have been employed by metal roofing installers over time to deal with such a change in roofing angles, with varying degrees of success.
The state-of-the-art flashing techniques often fail in extreme weather conditions when water blown by high winds penetrates flashing details at the ridge cap, valley, fascia, and slope break, because the flashing is not continuous and interlocking. In particular, flashing techniques at slope breaks that rely on sealants to prevent water penetration will fail over time as sealants are weathered and age.
The present invention involves a field-proven technique that will allow the installation of roofing panels and ridge caps onto a roof with a split pitch in a single, continuous length without the need to cut the roofing panel. Roofing panels and ridge caps are installed from ridge to eaves with continuous double-lock standing seams without cuts or seams, thereby creating leak-proof conditions. The continuous nature of the double lock seams is crucial, because joints along the seam would permit water or wind to work on the seam and eventually split it open.
The typical roof in a high wind weather condition is degraded and eventually destroyed because one or more roofing panels and or the ridge cap are lifted off of the structure. When this happens, the entire roof is quickly peeled off of the building and the rest of the building is exposed to the weather. By eliminating the entry of water and wind under the edges of the roof panels and ridge cap, the roof will survive heavy hurricane force winds.
The purpose of this invention is to provide a standard American-style roof with eaves, pitched or flat, straight pitch or split pitch, or plantation style, resistance to winds of extreme force by forming a metal membrane of continuous interlocking flashing. With roofing panels, the present invention will confer resistance to all winds, not depending on thru fasteners or flashing with caulk.
All details of roof split pitch, valley, ridge cap, fascia are unique and new to the roofing industry because roofers have not been equipped to produce continuous panels and all other flashings in one piece, including ridge caps, valleys, soffit flashings, fascia cap, on site.